Retractable lanyards are known in the art and are configured to attach to a person or object, allowing for a range of motion, but preventing a free-fall accident by preventing the complete pay-out of the line. In many designs, a multi-piece reader arm and spool are configured to prevent the pay-out, where the spool is formed to include a number of tracks and as the spool rotates, the reader arm will gradually engage with one of the tracks to prevent further rotation of the spool.
While useful in the prevention of pay-out, this type of retractable lanyard cannot be “immediately locked” at any desired location. The configuration of the tracks in the spool dictates the discrete locations where the reader arm will engage with the spool and prevent further rotation. As with any type of retractable line (for example, a seat belt, cable or the like), when an individual desires to “lock” a retractable lanyard in a position, the individual must quickly pull out the line until the reader arm engages with a track. As a result, there is no way to know beforehand how much of the line will become exposed before the locking mechanism engages. In some cases, too much line becomes exposed before locking occurs and may result in an unsafe condition or an undesired position.
Simply stated, a user of a retractable lanyard cannot gauge exactly how much line will be let out before locking occurs.